DIY Piggy Bank Gift Boxes

I was very excited to participate in a sewing challenge to create something for $15 at Wal-Mart.

Unfortunately I found out my Wal-Mart doesn’t have a fabric section. But there is still plenty of fabric in the store! From bedding to clothing, there are plenty of sewing materials to choose. I decided to do one of my very favorite sewing projects, embellishing t-shirts.

I found two t-shirts that were $7 each and thought perfect! Then when they rang up on sale, I realized I only spent $9 total. What else could I add? Wait, why would I add anything? I decided to enjoy spending even less than challenged.

One tip I have for purchasing tees to cut up for embellishing is choose the largest size shirt available. They are usually all the same price, so maximize the material you are getting. Here I used an XL men's shirt instead of the same size tee I bought to embellish.

Working with t-shirts is very easy for me because I am a super lazy sewer, and a I don't have to worry about fraying when cutting up shapes and strips!

Here I used a Rotary Cutter and Acrylic Ruler on a Cutting Mat to easily cut lots of strips of white tee. I ran each strip through my sewing machine with a regular running stitch without back-stitching at the beginning or end, then pulled one string from the strip to gently ruffle. Pin them around the shirt in spirals and machine-stitch through each strip to secure.

This project is easy to do but does require a lot of patience. But for me, to create a designer looking shirt that is one-of-a-kind for only $9 (I still have 75% of the white tee left for another project) is priceless!